Abstract
Environmental concerns and several adverse effects of reliance on and improper use of pesticides make necessary the use of alternative methods. Allelopathy has a rather unexploited potential in integrated weed management and ought to be further studied. The allelopathic effects of velvet bean (Mucuna pruriens L. DC. var. utilis) on seedling emergence and first growth of the important weed rigid ryegrass (Lolium rigidum L.) were evaluated in a pot experiment conducted at Agricultural University of Athens. Leaf residues of velvet bean were used to determine their inhibitory potential on seedling emergence and growth parameters including height, leaf number, tillering and fresh and dry weight of rigid ryegrass. Moreover, the allelopathic potential of inflorescence residues of chia (Salvia hispanica L.) on rigid ryegrass was also evaluated. Our results revealed a significant weed suppressive ability of the studied plants. The plant residues incorporated into the soil significantly reduced the seedling emergence and growth parameters of rigid ryegrass as compared to the control. In particular, velvet bean’s residues also reduced height, leaf number and biomass of rigid ryegrass up to 26, 51 and 62%, respectively. The indicated allelopathic activity of velvet bean and chia could be further exploited in future studies, by using either allelochemicals as models for future herbicides or the plants as useful cover crops or mulches in terms of integrated weed management.
Highlights
Velvet bean (Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC. var. utilis) is a member of Fabaceae family, widely growing in tropical and subtropical regions as forage and cover crop (Anaya, 1999; Marchiosi et al, 2016) It has been reported to be cultivated in sustainable and organic cropping systems and to increase the productivity of gramineous crops such as rice and corn in mixed culture (Sasamoto et al, 2013)
The experimental data were analysed according to the completely randomized design to examine the allelopathic potential of velvet bean and chia against rigid ryegrass
The combined analysis of variance revealed that the rate of rigid ryegrass seed germination was significantly affected by the different plant residues
Summary
Velvet bean (Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC. var. utilis) is a member of Fabaceae family, widely growing in tropical and subtropical regions as forage and cover crop (Anaya, 1999; Marchiosi et al, 2016) It has been reported to be cultivated in sustainable and organic cropping systems and to increase the productivity of gramineous crops such as rice and corn in mixed culture (Sasamoto et al, 2013). With its great nitrogen fixation potential, it is considered to have a high weed suppressive ability (Lawson et al, 2006). Several studies have shown that L-DOPA selectively suppresses seed germination (Adler and Chase, 2007). Very few studies reported to date have assessed the allelopathic potential of velvet bean especially against weeds of high agronomic importance. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the allelopathic activity of M. pruriens on the germination and first growth of the important weed rigid ryegrass. The allelopathic potential of chia (Salvia hispanica L.) on rigid ryegrass was assessed, since there are indications that other species of the genus Salvia (e.g. Salvia officinalis L.) have several allelopathic effects but without any specific information on chia. The dry weight was determined after drying for 48 h at 62 °C
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